COLUMBIA, S.C.— In response to the crisis facing service members aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, Dr. Annie Andrews issued the following statement:

“I am calling on the Trump administration and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to immediately address the dangerous and degrading conditions being endured by the crew of the USS Abraham Lincoln.

According to reports, the USS Abraham Lincoln is currently in its ninth month at sea. That is 208 days without a port visit and five straight months of combat operations.

It’s reported our sailors are dealing with moldy showers, no soap, broken toilets, and are running on only two days off in seven months. There is no plan for how to rotate ships, and no adequate supplies to defend the airspace around our own bases. The strain on service members and their families is building week by week.

This is not just a logistical failure. It is a leadership failure. As a candidate for the United States Senate from South Carolina, a state that is home to some of the bravest military men and women in this nation, I refuse to stand by while our service members are treated with such contempt. Our sailors and their families deserve better. Our national security deserves better.

I am calling for:

1. Immediate relief for the crew of the USS Abraham Lincoln, including a port visit and proper supplies.

2. A clear, accountable plan for ship rotations and crew rest.

3. Congressional oversight to hold this administration accountable for its gross mismanagement of our military.

This is what happens when you put unqualified loyalists in charge of national defense. It is time to restore competence, compassion, and accountability to the Pentagon. It is time to bring our servicemembers home and put an end to this madness.

I will fight every single day in the U.S. Senate to ensure that no service member is ever left behind, whether on the battlefield or in a moldy berthing space on a ship that has been at sea for far too long.

We need a return to leadership in Washington that honors our troops, their families, and refuses to treat their sacrifice as an afterthought. Our servicemembers deserve leaders who have their backs. It’s time we gave them one.”

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